Design and psychology are not incompatible—quite the opposite! Today, we’ll see how the psychology of form, and more specifically Gestalt theory, can be useful in designing your interfaces.
Introduction
The Gestalt theory (from the German “Gestalten”, roughly translated as “to shape” in French) was formulated in Germany in the 20th century by several psychologists and philosophers (notably Christian von Ehrenfels, considered the pioneer of this theory).
This theory seeks to explain how we perceive the world around us. It states that when faced with an environment, a complex world, our brain tries to organize, simplify, and give form to what we perceive. This is why we have a holistic view of things. For example, we perceive a computer keyboard as an object as a whole, and not as a detail of several keys aligned and placed on a base.
In this post, we will see how this theory and the resulting laws can be applied to Web Design. To do this, I suggest 7 images to discover, understand, and apply the laws of Gestalt when designing your interfaces:
The Law of Good Form
The Law of Proximity
The Law of Similarity
The Law of Continuity
The Law of Closure
The Law of Common Fate
The Law of Familiarity
- https://blocnotes.iergo.fr/breve/motsetphrases/theorie-de-la-gestalt/
- https://blog.wecoprod.com/gestalt-psychologie-design/https://openclassrooms.com/fr/courses/5248811-appliquez-la-psychologie-au-design/5588256-appuyez-vous-sur-la-perception-des-formes-pour-mieux-organiser-vos-ecrans
- https://nospensees.fr/les-lois-de-la-gestalt-voici-comment-nous-organisons-ce-que-nous-voyons/
- https://www.nundesign.fr/pedagogie/fondamentaux-graphiques/gestalt-la-theorie-de-la-forme
- https://www.ux-republic.com/theorie-de-gestalt-psychologie-de-forme/
Alexandre Pons - UX Designer
